The Emerald Eyed Immortal
by deathstalker11
Summary: Percy Jackson is no longer the 'happy-go-lucky' demigod. He was forced to open his eyes and see what he really was worth to the Olympians. Now he believes that to survive in this immortal world, one must always have the right leverage. Read and find out how his dark and sadistic personality influences the Olympian politics and his own destiny. A retake on the "The Titan's Curse".
1. Chapter 1

**CHAPTER 1**

Sergei Pushkin was a man of many talents. He could play piano, violin, perform in concerts and was an avid fan of adventure sports. After a rough childhood in East Berlin with an abusive father, he was forced to become multi-faceted. His time in the Soviet army and then in the intelligence world helped to sharpen his talents. Being the head of KGB after the fall of Soviet Union made him paranoid. Thus, his surprise knew no bounds when he found that someone has broken into his office. He slowly opened the door and stepped inside. That someone was a young man with a raven-black, messy hair and emerald green eyes. He was wearing a black trench coat and his dirty brown combat boots were on the table. On seeing the head of KGB, he gave a sinister grin showing his pearly white teeth.

"You", exclaimed Pushkin.

"Ah, Mr. Pushkin. How nice to see you again. I suppose I shouldn't be surprised?"

"Of course, you shouldn't. The very fact that you knew where this building was and you managed to break in here should make that point abundantly clear. I'd have shot you first and talked but you have managed to make me curious."

"I must say Mr. Pushkin, I'm surprised as to why you are not pointing the gun which you have on your right holster at me right now. Am I that charming? Or is the gun empty?"

"Enough of small talk. Who are you and what do you want?" There were several scenarios running through Pushkin's head. Is he an assassin here to assassinate him and make it look like a suicide? He daresay, the would-be assassin couldn't have picked up a better time. Numerous court battles with his ex-wife have bled him dry.

"Did the MI-5 sent you to kill me? Or perhaps the MOSSAD?" He knew that the CIA didn't have the assets to kill him in his own office.

"Mr. Pushkin, I am deeply hurt that you'd think that I'm here to kill you. In fact, I'm here talk and clarify a few issues."

"Don't take me for a fool, Mr. Whoever-you-are. If you wanted to talk, you wouldn't have broken into my office."

"Are you then suggesting that I kidnap you on your way to home? Or maybe when you are on your way to see Sasha? Or when you…"

"Whatever it is that you want from me, leave Sasha and Maria out of this"

"I was intending to leave them out of our business. We don't have any right to drag children into conflicts and disagreements caused by adults. Don't you agree?"

"So, you are saying we are in conflict or disagreement?"

"Come now Mr. Pushkin, if we were all chummy, why would I break into your office?"

"Strange world we live in" he shrugged.

"Fair enough. I have a proposition for you Mr. Pushkin. Would you like to hear me out?"

"Alright. What is it that you want?"

"You see Mr. Pushkin, I was frankly surprised when you unearthed the existence of enhanced humans. I always knew that mortal intelligence agencies were good. But I didn't know they were that good. I always assumed it was one of the western agencies who would catch on to us but I think you are a level of your own."

"Wait, did you just say _us_?" He wasn't really surprised by the intruder's ignorance. In fact, people of his own country thinks KGB is just a bunch of overweight oligarchs.

"Yes, us. But don't sweat the details. I'd like to know how. What is the source of your information? Are you clear-sighted?"

"Mr. Intruder, I don't really know what you are talking about? Enhanced-humans? Clear-sighted? Is this some kind of joke? Or are you a retard?" This was the standard response. He rehearsed it several times. In fact, all the people he dragged into his pet project were forced to rehearse it at least twice daily.

"I see. Well I didn't really expect you to start singing all about your Project Pegasus. So you see, I took the liberty of peeking through your cabinet. You can imagine my surprise when I find detailed reports of monster sightings in the United States. Or your classified briefs to the defence ministry about the existence of enhanced-humans. Well do you know what these enhanced-humans are Mr. Pushkin?"

He wasn't really surprised. If someone managed to break into a building that doesn't exist, he can and will break into a cabinet that doesn't exist and read files that don't exist.

"There's no such thing as enhanced-human"

"Of there isn't Mr. Pushkin. At least that's what you told the Chief Auditor, before he mysteriously died in a plane crash"

"I'd say that a plane crash _survivor_ is mysterious"

"I'll give you that. Well Mr. Pushkin, I'm sure you have heard about Greek and Roman myths. Do you know what demigods are?"

"Children of gods and humans. I know what demigods are. I don't know where you are going with this."

"Sure you do. These demigods are what you call enhanced humans. Because they are physically and sometimes mentally enhanced than normal human beings."

"What are you getting at?"

"You see, we demigods have to keep our existence a secret. You know why? Because according to our immortal parents, it is to protect the normal humans from evils of our world. But both you and I know that this is bullshit. The gods have never cared for us lowly mortals. It is for a far selfish reason. But whatever. Being a spy master, you know that no matter how much we hate the politician, we'll always love the country. So Mr. Pushkin, it is time for you to pay your price back to your country."

"What do you mean paying my price back to my country?"

"Why, dying for your country of course. I believe that it is the ultimate price one can pay for his country".

As the gunshots rang out in the night, Sergei Pushkin had only one thought in his mind.

"Why the hell didn't I ask his name first?"

 **Hi, this is my first attempt at writing a story. Reviews, criticisms and compliments are always welcome and appreciated. I have tried to minimize grammatical and spelling errors as much as possible. Since my native language is not English, please feel free to point out any errors you might come across. Deathstalker11 out. Take care.**


	2. Chapter 2

**CHAPTER 2**

It was a cold stormy night. The wind was furiously beating down his weathered trench coat. He grasped his coat and pulled it tighter around him. He hated it when he had to kill people. Not because he hated killing per se, but because most of the time he had to choose conditions wherein people won't immediately get suspicious if someone doesn't turn up on time. If he chose a warm sunny day to kill a person, people will immediately get suspicious if the person doesn't return home in time.

He slowly made his way back to the bar. He went inside and was met with the smell of cheese omelette. His stomach gave an involuntary growl.

"Ah my goodness, that's a delicious looking omelette you have cooked."

"Why thank you Mr.." the bartender was surprised. People normally did compliment her omelettes, but not a complete stranger. In fact, her omelettes were usually not enticing in appearance.

"Call me Percy. No need for any salutations."

"Well thank you Percy. Usually I don't get compliments from a total stranger. But for you, I'll make one and it's on the house."

"Thank you so much. I had a rather tiring night and was quite hungry. Why don't we have dinner together?"

"Are you trying to get inside my pants?"

"That depends. Do you feel like letting me inside your pants?" he asked with a mischievous wink.

"Nice try but you'll have to do better than that."

"I'll remember the advice. But nevertheless, we still should have dinner together. Its rather tiring to eat alone. Nothing beats having a dinner with a beautiful girl."

"Alright Percy, I'll have dinner with you. My shift ends in an hour. What will you have in between?"

"A nice glass of whiskey will do"

As he was having his whiskey, he wondered what would his mother would have said if she knew what he was about to do.

"For a man who is as flirtatious as yourself, you are surprisingly quiet. Does my omelettes not live up to expectations Percy?"

"You are partially correct. Indeed, I'm quiet because of your omelettes. But only because they exceed my expectations".

For the better part of the dinner, she was trying to figure out this Percy guy. Never would have she imagined herself getting asked to a dinner by a total stranger and never would have she imagined herself agreeing to it. Its not that she wasn't beautiful. She was indeed pretty but she wasn't that beautiful to get asked out by total stranger. And the stranger in front of her is a sight to behold. He was what people would call devilishly handsome. With raven-black messy hair, emerald green eyes, square jaw, no girl would be able to resist his smile.

"Do you have any family?".

The girl was surprised. Maybe not so. It wasn't that strange when you have dinner with an unknown person and he asks you about your family. It keeps the conversation going. But something about his tone and his way of asking made her wary.

"You are thinking too much. Its just a simple question" she chided herself.

"I had. My dad died a few days ago in an accident or that's what they told me. And my sister died when she OD'd herself with sleeping pills"

"Oh. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have asked really."

"Its all right. You couldn't have possibly known."

"So, you are not sure about your dad but you are sure about your sister?"

"I wasn't allowed to see my father's dead body. I was given his will and the post-mortem report about the cause of death."

"But why the suspicion? That often happens with accident victims."

"Not when there are government officials in your house the next day questioning you about your father's recent acquaintances."

"Oh I see. And your sister?"

"She was undergoing through a troubled break up. She couldn't sleep at night. So she used to take sleeping pills."

"I don't think you'd die even if you overdose yourself with sleeping pills. Of course, you'd have to be hospitalized but it won't be fatal"

"It is fatal when you OD yourself while sitting on the balcony railing."

"I'm really sorry for asking you all these. Its very insensitive of me." Honestly, she was a bit pissed. Who the hell was this stranger and why is he asking her about her dead family? He didn't ask about her mother though. "That's strange" she thought out loud.

"What's strange?" he asked. His eyes were burning with curiosity and something else. She couldn't quite figure it out.

"You never asked me about my mother". The girl was now wary. Something is definitely wrong here. She couldn't quite put her finger to it.

"I thought it be insensitive of me to ask about your mother".

"Well it didn't stop you from asking about my dad and sister." She realized what was wrong. There were so many things that were wrong. He asked about her family as if he knew they were dead. He complimented her omelette as if he knew they would taste good.

"Like father like daughter. I must say, you are smarter than you look." She immediately knew that she was screwed. If a total stranger says you are smarter than you look, it means that you should have kept your mouth shut.

"So Percy, if that's your name, what are you going to do?" Even when she put up a brave face she was terrified. She knew that something bad is going to happen to her.

"Oh don't be afraid. I swear, I'm not going to do anything. Well other than to finish my dinner of course."

"And after you finish your dinner?"

"I'm going to pay you for the whiskey and walk out of here?" She was genuinely surprised.

This was unprecedented. "So that's it?" she asked with surprise written on her face.

"Yup that's precisely it."

"Don't worry about the whiskey. Its on the house."

"Alright my lady. As you wish." He answered with mischievous smile.

She gave a satisfied sigh. Never again would she go out with a complete stranger. Still, even as she thought about the events, there was something gnawing at the back of her head.

Maybe Percy knew her father. Still there was something wrong.

"Alright. That was indeed delicious. Thank you for the dinner. I'll be going on my way then. Goodnight and take care Maria."

"Goodnight Percy. And take care."

As he left the bar she suddenly figured out what was wrong. How in the hell did he know her name? Maybe he was his dad's colleague then?

As she was musing about the events, she suddenly tripped.

"What the…" As she looked down, she saw a briefcase with the initials P.J. engraved on them.

The winds grew fierce, the man called Percy grasped his trench coat and pulled it tighter. His mouth broke into a sinister smile. His emerald green eyes held no warmth even as the bar he exited a few minutes back was engulfed in a huge fireball.

 **Now that we know who Percy is, I'm waiting for your opinions. As usual, reviews, criticisms and compliments are always appreciated. Deathstalker11 out. Take care.**


	3. Chapter 3

**CHAPTER 3**

Every time he visited Olympus, he was awestruck. Not because of its grandeur or architecture but because he knew what Zeus was thinking when he demanded its construction.

He can't find a fault with him though. When you are the king of gods, you are bound to have a few bitter enemies. If you don't have any, then you are not much of a king. Olympus is designed to intimidate any potential enemies.

A tired sigh escaped him. Screw Zeus and his paranoia.

The moment he walked into the meeting, a chaotic sight welcomed him.

Athena and Poseidon were arguing as usual. Apollo and Artemis were fighting as usual. Ares and Hephaestus were brawling as usual. Dionysus was in a drunken stupor as usual.

Somethings never change, even after millennia.

Hestia, as usual, was the first to notice him.

"Hello Percy. How have you been?"

"Ah Lady Hestia. I'm fine. A bit tired but fine nonetheless."

Zeus then cleared his throat.

"Perseus. It is good you have heeded our summon. We wanted some information from you."

Percy was pissed. He knew what Zeus was getting at. "I told you numerous times before Zeus, call me Percy. Not Perseus."

Zeus was visibly ticked off. No demigod ever disregarded him the way Percy did and lived to tell the tale. However in this case, there was nothing he could do. Besides, Percy wasn't strictly a demigod. But no can really say what he was. Except for an immortal maybe.

Percy gave a loud sigh and sat on a comfortable looking chair that appeared from nowhere.

"Perseus" continued Athena as if she was the one talking from before. "What information can you give us the about the mysterious circumstances regarding the death of a certain Sergei Pushkin and his daughters Maria and Sasha Pushkin?"

"Nothing except Sergei Pushkin was shot three times on his chest. Sasha committed suicide by overdosing on sleeping pills and Maria was one among fifteen others killed in a cylinder explosion."

"So you know about their deaths?" asked Artemis.

Percy hated her. He was visibly ticked off. "You flatter me Arty. I think anyone watching the 9pm news in the eastern half of the world knows about them."

Artemis hated him in return. No one dared to call her Arty. Not even her brother. As she was fuming, Hera steered away the conversation. She was afraid Artemis might act rashly which will make the entire Olympian council regret.

"Perseus, we believe that you had something to do with their deaths" said Hera. Percy glanced at Hestia. She gave him a sad smile.

"Fuck it" he muttered.

"Well I must congratulate the Olympian council for their excellent detective work" he drawled sarcastically. Zeus was fuming in anger. How dare this impudent halfling mock the Olympian council. "Perseus, we would like to know the reason for your actions" said Artemis in a barely concealed hate. She was pissed that he killed not only two innocent girls but several others because of his methods.

"Wanting something doesn't mean you will get it Arty. You of all the gods should know this better. I had my reasons. And I have no obligations to inform you about my actions or my reasons for those actions. Remember one thing, you gods are able to keep your asses warm in those thrones because of me". Percy was now fuming in anger. How dare they question his actions without knowing anything. Innocent? No one was innocent here. All of them who died were guilty. Knowingly or unknowingly. Except maybe for those 15 others.

"If that is all, I'll be taking my leave." Percy was about to take to disappear when Poseidon called him out. "Percy wait, please listen to us before coming to a decision". Poseidon was desperate. He managed to see Percy after a very long time. He won't allow him to leave in a bad taste.

Percy gave a loud sigh. He was tired of all this drama. "Fine. I'll listen as long as it doesn't involve discussions about my actions".

"We have some news for you" Zeus said with a smug grin. Percy was immediately alert. Zeus with smug grins was usually accompanied by bad news.

"Well I don't have all day. So out with it all ready". "Kronos is rising" Zeus said blankly. Percy was partly relieved. It was nothing he didn't know. "Of course he is. Tell me something I don't know" Percy said exasperatedly. Zeus was smarting. He wanted to beat Percy in his own game but couldn't. "So you knew about this all along and didn't tell us why exactly?" asked Athena. "Like I said Athena, I've had my reasons. But the primary reason was I wanted to see when you will realize it. So now that you realize it, how? Was it a quest gone wrong? Ah, the lightning bolt fiasco. Wasn't Ares involved? How come he is still able to play with that giant toothpick of his?" Percy once again gave a tired sigh. Trust Zeus to let his son go scot free. Even if the said son was about to destroy the world.

"What can I say? He attacked me where it hurt the most" Ares gave a nonchalant reply. "For a god of war, you are a fucking wimp" Percy egged him. He enjoyed Ares get frustrated. "Wanna take this outside you punk?" Ares was livid but Percy gave him a smile that was something you give when you see a baby trying to fight with an adult. "I'd love to whip your ass but I don't have the time right now to indulge you. So why don't you go back being a good boy and play with your toothpick?" Percy gave an indulgent smile. Ares was about to retort when Apollo cut him off. "Percy, we would like you to check up on the camp". Percy raised an eyebrow." And tell me, why would I do that exactly?" Artemis gave him a smirk. "We would overlook your actions in Russia". Percy was eyebrow twitched. "Arty for the last time, I don't care even if you don't overlook my actions. There's nothing you can do really". Percy gave a smug grin while Artemis was about to jump on him with a hunting knife.

"As for your request Zeus, I decline. I don't see the necessity to visit the camp. I may end up killing a few campers and I hate killing demigods". Percy vanished with whirlpool of shadows.

"Well that went swimmingly" Poseidon drawled sarcastically while looking at Zeus. Zeus had his hand on his forehead. He would have to figure out how to make Percy visit the camp.

"All right, that's it for today. We reconvene the meeting at a later date". Zeus vanished in lightning storm. Rest of the gods flashed back to their palace. Artemis went back to her hunt with a pair of eyes as green as emerald fire swimming in her brain.

 **Hi guys, I'm back. I didn't decide yet whether to pair Percy up with someone or keep him a loner. I personally think he should be a loner. But please give your opinions as well as they are very much appreciated. The usual stuff- reviews, criticisms and compliments are all welcome. Deathstalker11 out. Take care.**

 **None of the characters are mine, sadly. Rick Riordan takes all credits. Sniff sniff.**


	4. Chapter 4

**CHAPTER 4**

"You know, Artemis was pretty hurt the way you sneered at her" said a lady. She was the perfect definition of beauty. Even Aphrodite, the Olympian goddess of beauty and love was jealous of her. An aura of darkness seeped from her. She was Nyx, the primordial goddess of night and was giving a disapproving stare towards the tall emerald-eyed man.

"Serves her right. She shouldn't have ticked me. How dare she uses her Olympian status against me?" said Percy. He was internally fuming. He would have loved to see Olympus crumble to ashes just to wipe that smirk from the Olympians.

"She was your best friend Percy" said Nyx. She gave a sad smile. She knew exactly what Percy was doing before being summoned to the Olympian council.

"You are right. She _was_ a friend. Now she's just another Olympian snob" Percy sneered. Nyx gave a tired sigh. "You were a hero Percy. Why did you have to turn up like this?" Nyx was sad. Percy was a bona-fide hero. Led numerous battles against Atlas, the feared Titan general and against Porphyrion, the bane of Zeus. But now he was, for a lack of a better term, a spy and an assassin. Nyx was his only friend. The only one he trusted even though he worked for Olympus.

"As you said Nyx, I was a hero, a soldier for Olympus. Then my eyes opened and realized what really was going on. I opted out of it and now here I am. Can't say I've been better" Percy replied with a sarcastic smirk. Nyx gave a tired smile. "Alright Percy, what was the meeting about?" Nyx was curious. She knew Zeus hated Percy. Yet with the troubling signs in tartarus, she knew even Zeus can't ignore the danger.

"Zeus is an idiot. He can see the signs yet he chooses to ignore them" Percy fumed. Nyx was surprised. "I was under the impression that Zeus actually heeded the warnings". Percy gave a grunt. "Hmph, as if. The only use of the signs he found was to one up me in my own game. When he couldn't do that, its no longer of any use to him. Talk about being a drama queen". Nyx was troubled. If Zeus is up to his usual hard-headedness the Olympus would fall. Even if she disapproved the way Olympians governed, they are still the best alternative.

"You know very well Percy that by the time Zeus realises the danger, it'll be too late. So what are you going to do about it?" Percy gave a sadistic smile. "Even though the gods claim that they are better than humans, in reality, they aren't. They are same. To open their eyes, they need a violent stimulus" Nyx was troubled seeing Percy's smile. It no longer held any warmth. His emerald eyes were cold and calculating.

"What are you planning? If its something evil…"Percy gave a sinister laugh. "Don't worry Nyx, I'm not planning to overthrow Olympus. I'm simply planning to…. open their eyes…and extract sweet revenge" saying so Percy disappeared in a whirlpool of shadows.

Nyx gave a sad smile. She could never have imagined that the easy-going, fun-loving, immortal demigod turned out to cold, sinister and calculating. However, he needed to get rid of his emotions if he was to succeed in the murky world of intelligence.

 **Hi guys, this is Deathstalker11. Thank you all for the views. But please review the story. Your reviews, criticisms and compliments will make my day. And please do tell if you want Percy to be paired up with anyone. Deathstalker11 out. Take care.**


	5. Chapter 5

**CHAPTER 5**

Being the lord of underworld, Hades was perpetually grumpy. Even though his domain contained riches the Olympians couldn't even dream of, making him the richest god. But right now, he could barely control himself in anger. He never realised that the trick he pulled off at the start of WW2 would come back to bite him.

"For a cool, rationale god, seething in anger is unbecoming of you Hades" said an emerald eyed man. He was sitting in a chair that appeared from nowhere and was calmly ignoring Hades's glare.

"Let me ask you again Perseus, how did you know about Nico and Bianca?" He will never accept it but he was slightly wary of this emerald eyed demigod. He knew Percy was a master when it comes to espionage. But to think he would be the receiving end…

"I have little birds singing everywhere that there are two little unclaimed demigods in Las Vegas. Imagine my surprise, Hades, when I learned that they are your kids. I'm willing to bet my morning cup of coffee that Zeus thinks they are dead. Besides I recall asking you to call me Percy. You wouldn't want Zeus to know about your little pet project involving a sword, now would you?" Percy replied with a smirk. Hades gave a tired sigh. He knew Percy was dangerous but he had no idea how dangerous he truly was.

"Alright you got me. What do you want? And do you even drink coffee?"

"Of course I don't. Don't be naïve. I have a proposition for you"

 _1 year later…_

Jason Grace always felt that people looked up to him. Being the son of Zeus, he was a natural leader. And he liked the attention. Of course, he wouldn't admit it to anyone but all children of Zeus liked attention. So that's why, when his sister Thalia came back from being a pine tree, she cut into his share of attention. For the first time in his life, he felt this burning desire to prove himself. He had been to two other quests before, one to retrieve his father's lightning bolt and another to recover the golden fleece. But he always felt that somehow his actions were controlled. As if someone knew what he'd do. That's why when another quest came up to secure and extract two demigods of unknown heritage, he jumped at the opportunity. But to his dismay, it all went wrong the moment his sister joined him.

Jason, Thalia, Annabeth, a daughter of Athena and Grover, a satyr found themselves facing a manticore. Jason knew the plan went to shit because he screwed up. But he'd rather die than accept it as his fault. The manticore had those two terrified looking demigods.

"Pesky demigod scum. My master has great plans for you two" said Dr. Thorn, the manticore to the two puzzled and terrified demigods.

Suddenly there was a sound of hunting horn. Jason was perplexed while Dr. Thorn was horror-struck. He suddenly shot his spikes towards the three demigods but they were all intercepted mid-air by silver arrows.

"No no no, this can't be happening" muttered Dr. Thorn in desperation. He shot spikes after spikes frantically towards the general direction of the forest. But each of his spike was intercepted. Suddenly a group of girls came out from the forest, wearing silver parkas and their arrows trained at the manticore.

"Direct interference is prohibited" said Dr. Thorn in desperation and fear.

"Hunting monsters is under my domain and you are a filthy monster" snarled a 12-year old girl with her arrow trained towards the manticore.

"Permission to shoot, my lady" said a girl wearing tiara.

"Permission granted Zoe" said Artemis with a smirk. Annabeth made a jump and grabbed those terrified kids. However, the manticore caught her and was using her as a shield.

"Get away from there, you foolish girl" yelled Zoe. She was afraid she might hit Annabeth. But the manticore was too fast. "You haven't seen the last of me" he snarled and jumped off the cliff. "Annabeth" yelled Jason as he ran towards the cliff. But he was restrained by Thalia. "Calm down Jason. We'll get her" she said while sneering at the hunters.

Artemis was having a headache. She got an anonymous tip that there was a rare monster nearby. She didn't expect to find the monster holding demigods as hostage. This was a royal screw up. The demigods, on top of all this, were unbelieving. Bunch of naïve idiots.

"Hang on. Time out. You mean to say that gods and goddesses exist? And so do the monsters? And that human-crab thingy was a monster? And you guys are what they call demigods?" asked the young girl wearing a beanie, named Bianca.

"That's so cool" exclaimed her younger brother named Nico. Bianca gave an irritated glance towards her brother.

"No Nico, that's not cool" she said in irritation. Artemis was having a migraine. She couldn't deal with newbies right now.

"Everybody shut up. Zoe, we make camp here. Make the preparations. Phoebe, bring Thalia and Bianca to my tent. We'll discuss our next course of action."

The hunters went to their duties. Meanwhile Nico was having the time of his life talking to Jason.

Jason realised that Artemis will try to recruit Bianca and Thalia. She would have tried to recruit Annabeth as well had she been here. Thalia was sure to turn them down. However, for Bianca, all this was too much. He only hoped she doesn't make any rash decisions.

He was genuinely surprised when Zoe came to him. Truth be told, he was terrified of the girl.

"My lady wishes to speak with you, _boy_ " the last part was with a sneer. He meekly nodded and followed her. Inside her tent, Artemis was in her 25-year old form. She was beautiful with long auburn hair and deep silver eyes. Jason bowed.

"So you are Jason Grace, son of Zeus?" "Yes, my lady". Artemis was giving him a probing gaze. As if she was trying to learn his deepest secrets. Jason was terrified. He knew she was capable of turning him into a pincushion if she wanted. "What do you make of this situation, son of Zeus?" Artemis asked him. Its not like she needed to know his thoughts. But with the royal screw up, she needed to sort out her own thoughts. "I think we screwed up on our quest". Artemis gave him a nod. She was in deep thought. Suddenly there was a commotion outside. Zoe grabbed her bow and arrow and was about to move out when Artemis called her out. "Wait Zoe, I have a pretty good idea who it is". She gave a tired and sad smile. The curtains of her tent parted and an emerald eyed man entered.

"Fancy meeting you here Arty. I see you are not in your 12-year old form" he said with a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes. Jason was dumbstruck. Even the Olympians didn't call Artemis 'Arty'. Apollo was nearly castrated the one time he tried. But here he is, a man with raven-black messy hair and emerald eyes, calling Artemis 'Arty' without even a second thought.

"I told you a long time ago not to call me Arty. And don't play dumb with me, Percy. You knew where I was the entire time". Zoe was shocked. She never met this man before in her immortal life and yet here he was, fooling around in front of the goddess as if she was a child. She drew her hunting knife and snarled at him. "How dare you mock my lady, you lowly mortal. I'll…". "Zoe put the knife down" Artemis said with a tired sigh. "This is exactly why I told you not to call me Arty in front of my hunt". Percy gave Zoe a mocking smile, as if she was a kid who got hold of a new toy. "Why don't you listen to your goddess and put down your toy, I mean, weapon?" Zoe gave a snarl and was about to jump on him when Artemis banged her fist on the table. "That's enough. Zoe, put down your weapon and escort Jason out of here. Percy, stop egging Zoe". "As you wish my lady". She gave Percy one last glare and stalked off.

"Did Zeus send you?" she asked Percy. "Of course he did. He can't have his precious little daughter smacked around by a big, bad monster" Percy replied with a mocking grin. Artemis gave a tired sigh. "I would have told you what happened here but I'm pretty sure you already know. What do you think of this situation?" Percy gave a mysterious grin. "I think you managed to screw up a mission which could have been perfect. Meanwhile the other monster has been sighted. The one Zeus was afraid of". Artemis raised an eyebrow. "You mean the Oph..." "Hush", Percy hissed. Artemis was surprised. "Even the walls have ears Artemis. You should know this" Percy said with a condescending smirk. "I don't trust you. If I don't see the proof I won't hunt it" Artemis said blankly. Percy raised an eyebrow. "My my, aren't we a little testy?" "Shut up Percy. I've had a long day". "Fine, don't trust me. You will get no proof. But if the titans have it, you know who to blame when Olympus falls". Artemis knew she was being played. But there was really nothing she could do. Even if there is a chance that the creature was free, she had to hunt it before the titans do. "Fine, I'll let you twist my arm. But if something happens to me, I'll hunt you down and will kill you". "Good luck Arty" Percy gave a sadistic smile before disappearing in a whirlpool of shadows.

"Who was that man, my lady?" asked Zoe. She was still fuming. Every one's attention was on her. Everybody wanted to know who he was.

"He's Olympus's biggest mistake. And the greatest asset. I daresay, without him, Olympus would have fallen a long time ago. I suppose we all owe our lives to him in some form or other" Artemis said with a sad smile and faint blush covering her cheeks. "That's enough about him. I'll call Apollo and he'll take you to the camp. I have a monster to hunt" she said with a finality which surprised even herself.

Dr. Thorn was lying at the base of the cliff, recovering from his injuries. His master sent some people to secure the girl and they took her away. "I see you have done your job pretty well" said a voice from the dark. "You. You were the one who told me to get the girl. Show yourself" thundered Dr. Thorn. "Now now doc, no need to be hasty. You have performed admirably. However, there is still a loose end" said the mocking voice. "Loose end?" asked a confused Dr. Thorn. "Yes" the voice said blankly. The next thing the manticore knew, there was a celestial bronze sword sticking out from his chest. As his vision faded he could see a handsome face with emerald green eyes and a sinister smile.

 **Hi guys, thanks a lot for the views. Please review. This is my first attempt at writing a story. Please give your opinions. Deathstalker11 out. Take care guys.**


	6. Chapter 6

**CHAPTER 6**

Apollo was many things. A pervert, a playboy, a musician, a doctor but he always gave his sister and her hunt the highest priority. So when he felt her summon, he immediately flashed away to her location. However, he can't be seen appearing serious. So transformed his chariot into a bright red Maserati. He exited from his car and gave his 1000-watt smile to the ladies.

"You are late" said Artemis with a frown. "There are lot better things in this world than punctuality, baby sis" said Apollo with grin. Artemis gave an irritated huff. "How many times have I told you not to call me 'baby sis' Apollo? And you are younger than me remember? I helped mum to deliver you. Get your facts straight" Artemis said in irritation. "Ah details" said Apollo and looked towards the girls. "So who would like to nominate themselves for once in a lifetime opportunity of driving the sun chariot?" asked Apollo with a mischievous grin. Artemis gave a tired sigh. "Apollo, stop fooling around. We need to talk". Seeing his sister's serious face, Apollo ushered everyone in the chariot, which now took the form of a school bus. He shut the door and turned to face his sister.

"So what is it?" asked Apollo, taking a serious tone. "The monster has been sighted again" said Artemis blankly. "You mean the one Zeus was…" "Yes Apollo. That very monster" Artemis said cutting him off. Apollo pondered for a bit. "Did Percy tell you?" Apollo asked with a guarded face. Artemis couldn't quite figure out his emotion. "I'm surprised Apollo. So you indeed have a brain underneath all that" she said sarcastically. "Be careful sis" said Apollo ignoring her jibe. "You seem to be unusually concerned. It's a monster Apollo. I'm confident that I can hunt it" said Artemis with a superior look in her eyes. "That's not what I'm worried about sis. Its Percy's intel we are talking about. For all we know it could be a trap" said Apollo with somewhat apologetic face. "So even you don't trust Percy?" asked Artemis with a genuine curiosity. There were very few in the immortal world who trusted Percy. "Its not like I don't trust his motives. I don't trust his methods" said Apollo. "Anyway, I got to be going. Take the demigods and hunt back to the camp" said Artemis shrugging off a snowflake. "Take care sis" said Apollo with a sad smile and went inside his bus. Artemis gave him a small smile and flashed away. "I'm sorry sis. Hope you can forgive me" muttered Apollo softly to himself.

As the school bus took off in the general direction of the camp, a pair of emerald eyes emerged from the forest. His face broke into a sadistic smile. "The board is set, the die is cast. Now let the game begin" he muttered softly to himself, all the while sporting his trademark sinister smile.

After a tumultuous ride in the bus, where many people were forced throw up, they finally succeeded landing in the camp. Jason was green. He threw up his entire breakfast and lunch in the bus. As Thalia approached him, he lifted his hand. "Just a sec Thalia" he said and threw up again. At this rate, there wasn't going to be anything in his stomach to throw up. "Never again are you going near anything that flies" said Jason with a tired breath. Apollo grimaced. He knew it was his fault. He forced Thalia to drive, no fly, the bus despite knowing her fear of heights. "Alright ladies and gentlemen, thank you for choosing Sunwest Airways. We look forward to serve you again" said Apollo with a mischievous glint in his eyes and flashed away. "Never again" muttered Jason before becoming sick again.

The hunters were greeted with wary glances from the campers. Zoe smirked condescendingly at them. They should be worried about their skin. She hated boys and demigod boys were the worst of them. They should still remember what happened last time when a camper tried to hit on a hunter. Needless to say, the camp was a few cabins short.

Before war broke out between the campers and hunters, Chiron intervened. "Ah the hunters, welcome to the camp. I assume you'd be staying in your cabin?" asked the immortal centaur with a worrying glance towards the Stoll brothers. "Yes Chiron, we'll be staying at our cabin. We know our way. No need for an escort" said Zoe with a smirk. The centaur gave a relieved sigh. "Alright campers, back to your duties".

In his long immortal life, Chiron has seen and experienced many things. Needless to say, he wasn't surprised by things which would make any lesser immortal dumbstruck. However, he was genuinely surprised when he saw an emerald-eyed man with a raven-black messy hair sitting across the Ping-Pong table with his feet on the table. Chiron grimaced at the sight of his dirty brown combat boots.

"I see you still haven't thrown away the boots, Percy" said the centaur with an apprehensive smile. Percy shrugged. "What can I say? They have grown on me" he said with an apologetic smile. "I'd have asked you how you got in, but I don't think I'd wanna know" said Chiron with an unreadable face. "Hello Percy, how nice to see you again. How are you doing. I'm fine Chiron. Thanks for asking" said Percy with mischievous glint in his eyes. "Smartass" muttered Chiron, his eyebrows twitching. "What was that Chiron? I didn't quite get it" replied Percy with a playful smirk. "Its nothing. Now that the pleasantries are out of the way, what do you want?" said Chiron with an apprehensive look towards the attic. "Can't I simply come and visit my mentor?" asked Percy with an expression of mock hurt. "There was a time when I'd have believed you. But not now" said Chiron with a wistful expression on his face. "Fine as you say Chiron. I bring news from the basement". "And?". "The beast has been sighted. Also, the minor gods are dangerously inclined towards your father. Can't really say I blame them. The primordial council has pledged to remain neutral. So no help from the basement for your upcoming war" said Percy with a blank face. "And you had nothing to do with the minor gods?" asked Chiron apprehensively. Percy gave a mischievous grin. "If I said I had nothing to do with them, would you believe me Chiron?" "Of course not" said Chiron with a resigned voice. "So now that you have an updated picture, what are you going to do about it?" asked Percy with curiosity. "Why report this to the Olympian council of course. What else would I do?" asked Chiron, somewhat incredulously. Percy shrugged. "The Olympian council is toothless. Zeus is still ignoring the signs. Poseidon and Hades have their hands tied" said Percy disdainfully. "Well Artemis is hunting the beast. If she manages to hunt the beast successfully, I think the situation will be resolved" said Chiron with thoughtful expression. Percy's expression darkened. "You don't get it Chiron. Even if Artemis hunts the beast, your father and our missing demigod will find some other way to wage war. Your only chance is to make Zeus see that he is in danger. Poseidon and Hades can then mobilize their armies". Percy was frustrated. There were too many variables at play here. "Are you saying that the only way to make Zeus appreciate the danger is to make sure Artemis fails her hunt?" asked Chiron apprehensively. Percy expression was guarded. He knew that his mentor was far more cunning than he appeared to be. "Yes" he replied blankly. Chiron gave a tired sigh. "You gave Artemis false location about the beast?" Chiron asked somewhat anxiously. He could see where this was going. "No. I gave her the exact location" said Percy with a mischievous grin. "Alright Chiron. I've got places to be. So I'll be taking your leave. Good luck with the camp". Percy stood up and gave his mentor a short bow. "Wait. You said that the primordial council will remain neutral. Does that mean you won't interfere?" asked Chiron somewhat desperately. "Don't be stupid Chiron" said Percy with his signature sinister smile as he disappeared in a whirlpool of shadows.

 **Over 1.2k views. Thank you very much guys. And thanks to all who took their time to review this story. I'll try to incorporate your suggestions. Keep reviewing, criticising and complimenting. Deathstalker11 out. Take care.**


	7. Chapter 7

**CHAPTER 7**

Jason thought that his day couldn't get any worse. After being whacked around by the hunters in Capture-the-flag, where the hunters registered their 57th straight win and getting into a tussle with Thalia, he was sore all over. His fights with Thalia always left him exhausted. That's because she had a better control over lightning and her skills with spear and shield were superb. He usually got fried with lightning bolts. On top of all this, the conversation in the big house was worrying him to no end.

Just as he opened the door to his cabin, the room lit up. A well-furnished room with a marble bust of Zeus came into view. As he took in the sights, he realized he was not alone. "You must be Jason, son of Zeus" said the emerald-eyed man sitting on a sofa. "And you are Percy. I don't know if you remember but we've met before" said Jason. He was frightened. He knew that the person sitting on his favourite sofa was an immortal. Also, he understood that among all the immortals he met, this one was the most dangerous. Percy gave a chuckle. "Of course I remember. I have an excellent memory. And so should you, if you want to survive in this world of ours" said Percy with a mischievous grin. "What do you want?" asked Jason apprehensively. He had a good reason to be apprehensive. By all accounts, the man sitting in front of him was a spy. And he was supposedly very good at what he does. As far as he knew, spies were manipulative and they never fought fair. Far from his ideals. Jason gritted his teeth and his hand went towards his sword.

Percy gave a snort. "After running through all the scenarios, this is what you think will get you out alive? I must say, for the son of one of the big three, you are pretty stupid and reckless" said Percy mockingly. "Well I imagine you won't have much of a choice than to fight fair. So I stand a better chance in a fair fight" said Jason with a superior look in his eyes. Percy's eyes darkened. He waved his hand and the sword Jason was holding melted. The demigod was dumbstruck. He looked at the celestial bronze goop lying at his feet. Percy flicked his fingers and Jason was slammed into the wall and fell in a heap. He could definitely feel his ribs crack. Percy sauntered towards him, the furniture in his way turning to dust. "Congratulations. You've managed to piss me off. Tell me, son of Zeus, do you feel safe now? You held a sword at me. Did it give you any advantage? Or did you get a big head just because you managed to whack Ares?" said Percy, his lips curling into a sadistic smile. Jason was trembling with fear. He never felt this kind of aura before. It was filled with hate, malice and darkness. It was pure insanity. "Do you know who I am, Jason Grace? You think you're superior to humans just because you are the son of a god? You are so wrong that its just hilarious". Percy broke into a laughter. His laugh was not of mirth. It was of pure darkness. "You know the harsh truth about the gods, Jason? They don't care about you. Look at you now, you are only alive because of my mercy. Do you see Zeus swooping down from the heavens with a lightning bolt in hand, blasting me to smithereens? Yet you are his son. Do you know why you can't see him here? Because he did a benefit analysis. According to him, my survival is more beneficial to Olympus than yours. This is the harsh truth about this world. The sooner you get that into your head, the more likely will you survive".

Percy sat down beside Jason. He flicked his fingers and Jason could feel his ribs mend themselves. He sat up, supporting his back on the wall. He looked at Percy who was sitting beside him. The aura was not there anymore. "So are you on the enemy's side?" asked Jason. Now that he got a taste of his power, he realised how utterly hopeless he was if he had to fight him. "Unfortunately, I'm still on your side. I may not look like it but I too was a mortal demigod. Running errands for the gods and cleaning up their mess. I was used and then cast away when the Olympian council decided that I'm no longer useful. It was then I realised that how utterly hopeless we demigods were. We were just the pawns in this grand game of chess. We were useless. In order to survive, we need to remind them, from time to time, who wields the real power in this game" said Percy with a tired sigh. Jason was in deep thought. "Why did you visit me in the first place?" asked Jason, somewhat curious. He knew it was not simply to flaunt his power. "In this world, every secret has a reason for being a secret. There are simply too many ways to get yourself killed. Eavesdropping on conversation between immortals is the surest way" Percy said with a mischievous glint in his eyes. Jason paled significantly. He was caught.

Percy stood up. "I could have fixed this mess myself, but you need to ponder about what you did and your stupidity" he said with a finality. "Wait" Jason cried out "Why tell me all this?" he asked. "Why indeed" Percy murmured with a dark glint before disappearing in a whirlpool of shadows. Jason sighed in relief. As looked around the mess, he saw that the celestial bronze goop has turned back into his sword.

There was a huge commotion in front of the big house the next day. Zoe received a prophecy about Artemis in chains and was having a heated argument with Chiron. As soon as Jason stepped into the big house Chiron called the meeting into order. Zoe was the first to speak up.

"Artemis is the goddess of hunt. If she is in danger, it's the duty of the hunt to rescue her" said Zoe with a glare at the campers. "Zoe, you what the prophesy said. You need to have campers in your team. Else every effort will be for a naught" replied Thalia with a glare towards the hunters. "I think Jason still doesn't know anything about the prophesy" said Chiron with a calm, unreadable expression. Zoe took a deep breathe. She then started to recite the prophesy.

 _ **Five shall go west to the goddess in chains,**_

 _ **One shall be lost in the land without rain,**_

 _ **The bane of Olympus shows the trail,**_

 _ **Campers and Hunters combined prevail,**_

 _ **The Titan's curse must one withstand,**_

 _ **And one shall perish by a parent's hand.**_

Jason was dumbstruck. Here was a prophecy which not only said where to look, even if somewhat vaguely, but also predicted the death of at least 2 questers. However, it does explicitly state that both hunters and campers must be on the team.

"I'm sorry Zoe but the prophesy does state clearly state that both campers and hunters should be on the team" Jason said somewhat apologetically. He was afraid that Zoe might take offence and turn him into a target practise for her archery. "Zoe, you better decide who to take on your quest. You are the leader. Its your quest" said Chiron. "Hang on, we still don't know what we are supposed to do on our quest. What is the Titan's curse? Is the goddess in chains Lady Artemis? What is the 'bane of Olympus'?" asked Jason frantically. He was feeling left out. "There are many monsters which had enough power to topple Olympus. Like Typhon. Let's hope it is not one of them" said Chiron with an apprehensive sigh. Jason got the feeling that Chiron was deliberately withholding information from them. "So Zoe, pick your team today. You leave tomorrow at the earliest" Chiron said with a finality.

Just as Jason was about to walk back to his cabin, Zoe called him out. "Jason, take a walk with me" she said in a commanding tone. Jason resisted the urge to say 'Yes mam'. With a sigh, he turned towards her. "Would you like to join me on the quest?" she asked blankly. Jason was surprised. "Of all the campers present here, why me?" he asked. "Its because of two main reason. One, you have fought the manticore. I have a feeling we'll be seeing him again. Two, I have never seen any other campers fight before. Except for you and Thalia. I intend to ask her as well". Jason was in deep thought. He was intending to follow the quest if she haven't chosen him. This simplifies things. "Count me in. I need to rescue Annabeth. She has kept me from dying several times and I need to return the favour" he said with a determined expression.

Zoe was genuinely surprised. "You may yet be different, son of Zeus" she muttered. "Alright, I'll ask Thalia now" she said and went towards the direction of the arena.

 **Hi guys I'm back. I have read many stories where Jason was depicted to be full of himself. I felt it to be a little cliched. Please tell me what you guys think of his character. Keep reviewing, criticising and complimenting. Deathstalker11 out. Take care.**


	8. Chapter 8

**CHAPTER 8**

"You mean to say that Zoe chose Bianca as well for the quest? Is she out of her mind?" asked Percy with a genuine surprise. He can't imagine why would anyone choose a green demigod for a potentially fatal quest. He and Apollo met up in their usual spot. A bar in Norway. He chose Norway because of its proximity to a different pantheon. Olympians wouldn't be at their full power. But Apollo didn't need to know that. "Yes. I was surprised myself. Its not what you'd call a wise decision" said Apollo. "This complicates things a lot" muttered Percy. He needed to think about his deal with Hades. "What about my sister? Do you know where she is?" asked Apollo apprehensively. "Yea I know. So do you Apollo. Don't take me for a naïve and stupid demigod" he replied absent-mindedly. He was running several scenarios in his head. Angering Hades was inevitable. "What are we gonna do about the quest?" Apollo asked. He was desperate. If even Percy couldn't figure something out, they were in deep shit. "She'll be alright. I've made sure about that. However, even I can't delay the General for long. Its better if you help them indirectly Apollo. However, don't do something I wouldn't do" said Percy with a worried look in his face. "Interfering with a quest is a strict no-no with Zeus" Apollo said while giving apprehensive glances to Percy. "Of course its against the rules. But then, your sister's life is above those rules, isn't it Apollo?" Percy said with a tired sigh. He pitied Apollo. The god of poetry was misunderstood by his own twin sister. Nothing can be sadder than that. Apollo took on a determined expression. "Alright. I'll help the questers" he said and flashed out. Percy got up. He had business to take care of with a certain lord of underworld. He paid the bar-tender and flashed out.

Hades was in a deep thought. He had a deal with Percy and now, because of the actions of a certain foolish immortal hunter, it was on the verge of being broken. Percy was calmly seated on a bean bag, playing with a vicious looking dagger.

"You said I'll get to have a seat in the Olympian council in return for letting my kid being the child of prophesy. It seems you have managed to screw up" Hades snarled at the emerald-eyed immortal. Percy smiled inwardly. It seems that the gods care more about their position than the lives of their children. He knew it all too well. This shouldn't be too difficult then.

"Can you blame me for the decision of a foolish hunter? I never expected a battle-hardened hunter to recruit a fresh, young demigod let alone take her to a fatal quest" Percy replied in irritation. "Somehow I find that hard to believe" Hades muttered dubiously. Percy gave an exasperated sigh. "It may sound ridiculous to you but my job description is not to influence decisions of gods, hunters, demigods and all those out there. My job is to simply collect information". Percy was irritated. He can't be expected to go around whispering others what to do. "Doesn't stop you from doing it nevertheless" Hades replied with a raised eyebrow. Percy shrugged. "How about we make a new deal? It still gets you an Olympian seat though" Percy asked with a mysterious smile. Hades's face hardened. "Before going into any deal, I want you to do one thing". "What is it?" Percy asked with a guarded tone. "Make sure Zoe Nightshade is the second quester should my daughter become the first quester" Hades said with menacing glint. Percy's face broke into a sinister smile.

 _A few days later…_

Hecate was extremely irritated. She was a Titaness. It meant that she was above the gods in the food chain. She deserved more respect. Yet here he was, an immortal with emerald eyes and raven-black messy hair sitting across her without a care in the world.

"What do you want Perseus? I did as you asked. I am not giving any support to Zeus for the upcoming war" said Hecate with irritation and slight apprehension. She knew who Percy was. Needless to say, she was running several scenarios through her head.

"I know that Hecate and Olympus will be eternally grateful. But that's not why I've come here" replied Percy with a slight smirk. Hecate rolled her eyes. "Hmpf as if. I'm pretty sure Zeus doesn't know about it yet. So cut to the chase". "You remember about the package I asked you about?" Hecate was puzzled. She knew what he was talking about but she couldn't figure why he'd want it. "Those teeth are extremely rare. Why do you want them? And what if I don't have them?" asked Hecate apprehensively. Percy gave a sad smile. "If you don't have them, I'll be devastated Hecate. In despair and depression, I wouldn't know what I might let slip. You wouldn't want Olympus to know about your little group of, enhanced-humans let's say, in Europe, now would you? As for what I'd do with them, a boy is allowed to keep secrets" Percy replied with a cold expression. Hecate was terrified. His eyes were filled with cold, emerald fire. It promised eternal pain and suffering.

"Alright. I'll give them to you. What you do with them is up to you. But I'm pretty sure the saying involved girls" replied Hecate with a tired sigh. She wanted to get rid of Percy as soon as possible. "I'll keep that in mind Hecate. Thank you very much. I don't know what I'd do without you Hecate" Percy said with a mischievous glint in his eyes. "I'm pretty sure you'd have found someone else to blackmail" replied Hecate as Percy disappeared in a whirlpool of darkness.

 _Two days later…_

The quest was going badly for Jason. After having to face the Nemean lion and being chased by some mysterious skeleton warriors which simply refused to die, he was taking a breather in a train. To his surprise the train was filled with luxury cars. He promptly chose a Lamborghini. As he was resisting to fall asleep, Apollo appeared beside him. "I wish you wouldn't surprise me this way. You might give a kid heart-attack" exclaimed Jason. Apollo gave a smirk. "Whose train do you think you are on, kid? Percy was right. You are stupid" Apollo said with a mischievous grin. Jason put on a sour face. "Did you come here to simply insult me? Being an Olympian god, I thought you'd be busy" replied Jason. "I usually am. But situations are a little different right now that my sister is missing" replied Apollo with a cold expression. Jason gave an involuntary shiver. "All this needn't have had to happen if Zeus heeded the warning signs" said Apollo with a distaste. Jason raised his eyebrow. It was as if all this was pre-planned. "Did you know that Artemis would have been kidnapped?" asked Jason. Apollo stared at him. His face broke into a mysterious grin. "Don't be stupid Jason. I'm the god of prophesies after all" said Apollo with a glint in his eyes. Jason shrugged. "Don't think too much about your quest. You might even get help from Percy himself" Apollo said with a mischievous smirk. Jason was wide-eyed. "I thought Percy hated Olympus. Its surprising that he isn't against you gods" said Jason. After the last encounter with Percy, he honestly didn't want to meet him anytime soon. Apollo gave a forlorn smile. "Its sad really. That guy did so much for Olympus and yet he's misunderstood the most" said Apollo. He was among the very few gods who attempted to understand Percy. It was probably because Percy was a great friend of his mother. "Why is he like that? All mysterious, annoying and sly?" asked Jason with a genuine curiosity. Apollo gave a snort. "He's like that because he needs to be exactly like that" replied Apollo. As he got out from the car, Jason rolled down the windows. "How fast are we going?" he asked. "As fast as you need to be" Apollo replied with a mysterious smile and disappeared with a bright golden flash.

 **Hey guys, I'm back after a long time. Thank you for all the views. I intend to write separately about Percy in a different fic. However, I will give a brief overview about his history after this quest. As for the pairings, I decided Percy to have a history with Artemis which will probably be the reason for her to take the vow of maidenhood. Nothing is set in stone yet. So I'm still open to suggestions. Deathstalker11 out. Keep reading and reviewing. Take care.**


	9. Chapter 9

**CHAPTER 9**

Jason blinked twice. He was pretty sure he wasn't supposed to be in a limousine with the goddess of love in the middle of nowhere but he had little choice in the matter. When a goddess summons you, its always best for your health to answer promptly. Especially if the said goddess is the love goddess. After all, many wars started _because_ of love.

However there largely one-sided conversation came to a sudden halt. Aphrodite mentioned something about not picking up any object from the huge junkyard. Jason's mind was in a dizzy. He couldn't exactly remember what Aphrodite looked like. "That's it punk, time up. Now get on with your quest" said a gruff voice. Jason turned around and blinked again. It was Ares, the god of war. Subconsciously, his eyes looked down to his ankle, a movement which didn't go unnoticed by Ares. "Tche, you think you can take me again just because you got lucky one time? Newsflash kid. You are 1000 years too early to stand toe-to-toe with me" Ares snarled. Jason gave a smirk. "How's that ankle healing, oh mighty god of war?" Jason asked with a sarcastic smirk. Ares's eye twitched. "Not bad, punk. But you've a long way to go before you can make the master of taunts bow to you. And don't think I have forgotten about the curse. Someday you will feel it. Real soon" saying so, Ares grabbed Jason's neck, flung him outside the car and disappeared.

Jason gave a sigh. When he beat the god of war fair and square, he might have his ego too. So he was cursed by Ares. "Who am I kidding? I might have been cursed either way. Screw Ares and his gigantic ego" he muttered while dusting himself.

After telling his teammates about his conversation with Aphrodite they started making their way through the junkyard. They were having a hard time trying to restrain Grover and Bianca from nicking stuff from the junk. "This should be easy. We just don't have to take any stuff from here" Jason thought. Just then, they heard a massive screech.

Jason cursed himself. Just as his luck would have it, things went south real quick. A colossal automaton, the size of a skyscraper was facing them with its rusty sword drawn.

 _2 hours later…._

The ride out of the junkyard was quiet and solemn. Bianca sacrificed herself to stop the automaton. Every member of the quest was blaming themselves. Zoe was crying. Jason was quite shocked. He thought that the tough lieutenant of the hunt couldn't cry. He felt he was responsible because it was his idea in the first place to bring down the automaton from the inside.

After an uneventful ride, the truck ran out of gas just as the road dead-ended. Thalia slammed the door and the front tire blew out.

"That's great. What do we do now?" Thalia asked exasperatedly. "There's a path leading to the river which we are supposed to follow". Jason looked around. "Um Grover, that's a goat path". "So what? It's a path" said Grover in irritation. He could see where this was going. "Hate to break it to you but the rest of us aren't goats" Jason said in exasperation. He glanced at Thalia for backup but she was deathly pale. Jason gave a tired sigh. "Let's just walk around. A little walk won't kill us".

"I'm getting too old for this and I shouldn't even be saying this" thought Jason for the hundredth time. They were at Hoover dam when they found out that they were still being followed by the skeletons. After a brief skirmish with the skeletons in which he nearly killed a civilian, only to find out that she was clear sighted, he was soaring up in the air at the back of angel statues. He gave a tired sigh.

Dionysus was staring ahead. He was trying to avoid Percy as much as possible. But it's a little difficult when the said immortal was sitting right in front of him with his feet on the table. "What do you want Percy?" he asked warily. "I want you to tell me the exact whereabouts of the questers right now" replied Percy. "I'm not a fool Percy. You know exactly where the questers are right now" said Dionysus indignantly. He was pissed that the immortal was trying to verify his information from him but there's nothing he could do. "Fair enough. When the questers seek your help after the quest in Olympus, what are you gonna do?" "My business is my own. You don't have to stick your nose in it. It won't be in your best interest" Dionysus replied with a dangerous glint in his eyes. Percy snorted. "Threatening me is way above your pay-grade, _godling._ Besides, I swore to myself that I will protect Olympus from threats, both internal and external. Don't do something which will make you a threat"saying so Percy vanished in a whirlpool of shadows. Dionysus let out his breathe which he, didn't realize, was holding. "You never made any such oaths Perseus" he muttered softly to himself.

It was nearly sunset by the time they reached the Garden of Hesperides. Jason hoped that everything would go smoothly because Zoe was a Hesperide. Too bad lady luck just loved screwing with him. After a botched attempt to feed the enormous dragon by Zoe, they barely made it out alive from the garden. Zoe was injured however and Jason had a sneaking suspicion that Ladon's talons were poisonous.

As soon as they exited the garden, they came upon the ruins of Mount Othrys. "This is bad. It shouldn't be here" said Zoe. She was clutching her right arm. Jason noticed her actions. "You are hurt. Let me take a look at that". "Its nothing. Just a flesh wound. I'm all good" said Zoe. As they reached the summit, the sight that unfolded in front shocked them to the core. In the place of Atlas, who used to hold the sky, there was Artemis who was groaning in pain.

"My lady!" Zoe rushed forward but Artemis waved her way. She was sweating and breathing heavily. However, Zoe ran forward, despite her protests. She was crying and was tugging the chains.

"Ah, how touching" said a booming voice behind them. Jason turned around and saw Atlas smirking at them. He was wearing a silk suit. To his side was his arch-nemesis Luke holding a gagged and bound Annabeth. He held a knife to her throat.

"Let her go Luke" growled Thalia. "Nice to see you too, Thalia. And that is the General's decision". Thalia spat at him. Atlas gave a chuckle. "So much for old friends. How are you Zoe? My little traitor. Its been a long time since I have seen you". Artemis gave a groan. Zoe snarled at Atlas. "Free Artemis". Atlas gave a smirk. "Perhaps you would like to take her place?" Atlas was giving a condescending grin.

 **Hi guys. This is a short chapter because I wanted to get into the battle as quickly as possible. During the battle many characteristics of Percy will be revealed. So sit tight. Keep reading and reviewing. Deathstalker11 out. Take care!**


	10. Chapter 10

**CHAPTER 10**

"Join us Thalia. We both know you want power. We can give you the power to change your destiny. You don't have to be afraid of your father anymore. Olympus is going to fall whether we like it or not. Join us and save yourselves" said Luke. He was deathly pale. Jason scowled at him. He knew Thalia couldn't really restrain herself if it went any longer. Her fatal flaw was the greed for power just like his. He turned towards Zoe and Thalia. They gave a brief nod and charged.

Jason did many stupid things in his life. But what he did just now must top them all. He charged towards Atlas. Seeing him, Atlas gave a roar of laughter. "Just because you beat that wimp of a war god, you think you can stand up to me?" His silk suit morphed into a Greek battle armour and javelin appeared in his hands.

Jason fought many monsters in his quests. He even fought a war god. But Atlas was nothing like them. He realised, not for the first time, how utterly hopeless the quest was. Atlas had way more experience, skill and agility. He could see that he was a battle-hardened veteran while he was a snot-nosed puny demigod. As he fought on, the sword started to weigh him down and his arms began to feel like lead. He realised that the Curse of Ares was starting to take effect.

Thalia and Luke were in a vicious combat. While Luke was an excellent swordsman, Thalia was unbeatable in her spear and shield. Their fight was that of attrition. Luke was breathing heavily. He was pale and it seemed that he was running on fumes.

Zoe meanwhile was firing arrows after arrows at Atlas. However, they had little effect. He mostly swatted them away.

After a particularly vicious swipe of his javelin, Jason was thrown backwards and crashed into rocks. His sword was nowhere in sight and he could feel his ribs cracked. He realised that he cannot win the fight against Atlas. The general was slowly approaching Jason. As he raised his javelin to impale him, Zoe gave a desperate cry. "NO" she yelled and let loose a volley of arrows. They found their mark against the various chinks of Atlas's armour.

"ARGH!" He bellowed and turned towards his daughter.

Jason meanwhile stumbled towards Artemis. "The sky" he said "give it to me". "The burden will kill you. Its not for mortals. You will die" Artemis said. "I will die anyway. Give it to me" he said and took out his sword which returned back to him. He slashed the chains and crouched on one knee-held up his hands-and touched the sky. Artemis quickly slipped out from under the burden.

His entire body was on fire. His vision tinged red. He could hear his bones groaning. It was crushing him underneath. He could only catch glimpses of the battle.

Artemis was _fast._ She weaved in and out from Atlas. Jason was mesmerised. She fought elegantly. It was like a deadly dance. Her hunting knives were streaks of silver.

Thalia and Luke went spear on sword. However, he could see Thalia was pressing her advantage. "Give up Luke. You could never beat me". "We'll see about that Thalia" Luke snarled.

Despite Artemis being blindingly fast, she was being pushed back. Jason could see why Atlas was the general of the most fearsome army that ever walked upon earth. He was simply unstoppable. Even though he wasn't as fast as Artemis, his skill and experience overshadowed her. He could predict her strikes and parried them with ease. He feinted with the tip of his javelin. Artemis dodged but he swept around his javelin and knocked off of her feet. She fell on her back. Atlas raised his javelin for the kill.

"NO!" Zoe screamed. She leaped in between Artemis and her father and shot an arrow straight into his forehead. Atlas bellowed and backhanded his daughter, sending her crashing into the rocks. Jason winced involuntarily. Atlas raised his javelin once again to impale Artemis.

"First blood in a new war" he roared and he stabbed downward with all his might. Artemis closed her eyes, accepting her fate. Everything was in a standstill.

Only to find that Atlas no longer had his javelin.

Atlas turned to see that his javelin was pinned to a rock with a throwing knife. He understood that whoever managed to do that was formidable.

"Now now Atlas. Killing unarmed and helpless girls is unbecoming of a mighty general" said a silky voice. Jason was slack-jawed. He knew that voice very well. Artemis, for the first time, had a smile on her face despite noting the fact he called her _helpless_.

"You! You gave me the idea of using those skeletons. You gave me the location of those teeth. I know that voice. Show yourself" Atlas growled in anger. He couldn't believe he was being betrayed.

Jason would never forget how Atlas's face contorted in horror. Walking slowly towards him wearing a black trench coat and dirty brown combat boots was the emerald-eyed immortal with a raven black messy hair.

"Perseus" said Atlas in horror.

 **Hi guys, Deathstalker11 here. This is a short chapter. The next few chapters will be slowly updated. Its because of exams. But the story is still continuing. So hang on and keep reading and reviewing. Deathstalker11 out. Take care.**


	11. Chapter 11

**CHAPTER 11**

Jason was used to the auras of the Olympians. He had been to Olympus. It was powerful and intimidating. Atlas's aura felt much more intimidating than that of the Olympians'. It was understandable though. Titan's were higher than the gods in the food chain.

However, Percy's aura was something else. It was laced with hatred, malice and darkness. It was insanity at its purest form. Jason experienced it first-hand not so long ago. It had the ability to make the gods tremble. It felt the overwhelming urge to fold himself up in a foetal position and hide.

No matter how many he felt it, Jason decided he would never be used to it.

He looked around the battle-field. He could see all the fighting have stopped and everyone was looking at the newcomer with varying expressions.

Luke was paler than before. He was sweating and breathing heavily. In spite of Thalia holding a spear at him, he was eyeing Percy nervously. His knuckles were white and his hands were shaking.

Artemis, on the other hand, caught Jason's interest. She was sporting a smile inspite of being clearly affected by Percy's aura. Jason felt that his aura was corrosive to Artemis, who was more in tune with nature.

Annabeth was stopped fidgeting in her binds and was eyeing curiously at the immortal. By her expression, Jason could see that she did not know who he was and she hated not knowing.

Trust children of Athena to be curious even in life or death situations.

Percy, however, was eyeing everyone with curious glint. It was as if he was checking if all the members of quest are present. Of course, Jason had always suspected him to be involved in their quest somehow. It was disconcerting that they never met the manticore again.

"Looks like all the players are here. What do you say Atlas? Why don't we have a spar, eh? Just like the old days?" Percy asked with a foreboding smile on his face. It was the smile that elicited fight or flight response from your body reflexively.

"You are interfering their quest. You cannot do that. Its against the laws" Atlas replied in horror. Jason could never believe that someone could make the Titan general, quiver in fear.

"You are losing your touch Atlas. Only gods are forbidden from interfering with quests directly. Besides, I'm not interfering. I was chatting with those Hesperides when I thought I would check up on you. You know, guilty conscience about trapping you under the sky dishing out your punishment. Imagine my surprise, when I see that you not only free from your burden but managed to raise the ruins of Othrys and found your replacement. I must congratulate you on your freedom I suppose".

"Bah, don't try to fool me Perseus. You never intended to check up on me and you don't even have a conscience. You should be the last person to lecture me about killing helpless girls. You are no better than me. You are no better than your enemies. Last time, you got the drop on me because you didn't fight fairly. You were always the little coward. Resorting to your tricks than fighting like a true soldier. This time, no amount of your tricks will save you from your fate" Atlas snarled. He was gripping his new javelin tightly, knuckles white. Jason could see the weapon shaking.

Percy gave a mirthless laughter.

"You were always the stupid one. I don't do fair fights. Why should I? Fights are always unfair. You never give up your advantage on your enemy. Capitalising your advantage is not fair. Maybe you are right. I am no better than my enemy. So what? Its not that I'm troubled and this is the only catharsis for me which has gone wrong. I do what I do because there is no one else who has what it takes for the job. You think you can lecture me about my job? I have been doing it before you even knew what my job means. Before I was even immortal. Why do you think I went unnoticed by even the Lord of Time himself? Because I am very good at what I do".

Annabeth was having trouble wrapping her head around Percy's little speech. If whatever he said was true, it means he's older than about half the Olympians. Also, her previous notion that the Olympians were above the basic taboos was shattered. But then, all of it made sense. People in power were always corrupt.

"Nice speech. But it still won't save your sorry ass" Atlas growled. He gave roar and charged towards Percy.

Jason knew Atlas was screwed when Percy kept smiling at the charging general, getting into his fighting stance and drawing his twin short swords.

Percy's fighting style was… _impressive_ to say the least. He fought like a true battle-hardened veteran, which shouldn't be surprising to Jason, if his little speech was anything to go by.

There was no wasted strikes and no fancy moves. While they were not as fast as Artemis, but Jason believed that they could still sweep the floor with her. Atlas already did and Percy could do it as well. His every strike, every slash, every parry was executed with utmost precision to cause maximum amount damage to the enemy.

Their fight was cold, precise and brutal.

Jason could see Atlas was being pushed back. He was breathing heavily and his movements were increasingly sluggish. Percy, however, did not ease the pressure. He pressed on his attacks. Jason could see what the titan meant by unfair fight. He did not give Atlas any reprieve. Even when the said titan was disarmed. It was only through his brilliant agility and counter-attacks that he managed to regain his weapon.

However, Atlas could feel that he was losing. It was strange. He couldn't understand how he was losing his stamina rapidly. His arms were shaking beyond control. It was only because of adrenalin, or the immortal version of it, that he was still able to fight. But it was a losing one. He knew he needed to land a debilitating blow on Percy to at least get away from this fight.

Meanwhile, Thalia was steadily pushing back Luke towards the cliff edge. "Give up Luke. We don't want this. This isn't you" Thalia gave a desperate cry. Luke gave a chuckle. "Nice to know that you still care about me. But this fight is bigger than all of us. I can't back out of it now". Their attacks grew fiercer.

Everything for Jason slowed down when Percy caught Atlas's javelin in between his swords and snapped it in half. Atlas was caught off-guard Percy buried his elbow in his stomach. Atlas hunched down, winded heavily. His jaw was crushed by a brutal uppercut. He stumbled back. Before he even realised what was going on, Percy struck his ears. As his head was flung back, Percy punched his throat. Atlas was gurgling clutching his throat. As he stumbled towards Percy, his midsection was met with a devastating Sparta kick from Percy's heel.

Atlas was finally on his knees, kneeling at Percy's feet. He lost the fight.

Jason was finally bolted to reality.

He was confused. Wasn't he just witnessing Percy fight? Why were they simply standing and staring at each other? Atlas was beaten black and blue. His javelin in pieces and he was at Percy's feet. So why was his weapon still in his hand and standing in front of Percy as if he was in a trance?

Percy's eyes were literally filled with emerald fire. He was smirking at Atlas and gave him a condescending look.

Artemis, on the other hand, was absolutely bewitched. She knew about this power of his. A very long time ago, she was at the receiving end of this power. But she never witnessed it as a third person.

Needless to say, she was enraptured.

It all happened in slow motion for the demigods. The javelin fell from Atlas's hands. He slowly fell on his knees, blood pouring from his nose, ears and mouth. He had trouble breathing.

"Let's see. Fractured jaw, collapsed ear canals, crushed larynx, broken ribs and punctured lungs, haemorrhaging diaphragm…hmm, not bad for a day's work. If you were a mortal, you would have been already dead by now. Fortunately, you are a titan. You can always heal, given enough time and rest. You should get plenty of both…under the sky once again".

"H…How?" Atlas croaked. Percy gave a chuckle.

"You were caught in my illusion" Percy replied with a smirk. He lifted the titan by his armour and flung him towards Jason. The demigod let himself be swept away from under the sky and burden fell upon the titan once again. He opened his mouth and gave out one last cry, but no sound came out.

Luke gave one last desperate charge. Thalia simply knocked off his sword and bashed his head with her shield. He lost his footing and tumbled down from the cliff, giving Thalia one last sad smile.

Jason's vision was hazy. He blinked rapidly to clear it.

He could see Artemis running towards Zoe, holding the huntress up in her arms.

He blinked.

He could see the goddess crying out in anguish.

He blinked.

He could see Thalia rushing over to Annabeth, freeing her from her bonds. Both were sobbing, holding each other.

He blinked.

He could see Percy walking towards him. He wanted to get away. His vision was becoming hazy again. He blinked rapidly but nothing helped. He could see Percy's lips moving. He was trying to tell him something but he couldn't hear anything.

"Are you alright? Can you hear me?" Percy waved his hands.

His vision cleared suddenly. He could hear everything again.

"Y…Yes. I'm alright I guess. Just a bit dazed" he muttered. His body was aching everywhere. He wanted to pass out. He tried standing up but fell down, his knees shaking.

"Don't worry. Its just severe exhaustion. Nothing that can't be treated with a few days of bedrest" Percy said in a flat voice. There was no compassion or mocking. It was as if he was stating a historical fact.

He helped the demigod up his feet and trudged towards Artemis, who was sobbing uncontrollably. Jason fell on his knees beside Zoe. Her eyes were closed and her expression peaceful. It was as if she sleeping peacefully.

Jason knew that the lieutenant was dead.

"I will place her among the stars where she rightfully belongs" Artemis said with a sniffle. She closed her eyes and murmured something in ancient Greek. Zoe's body dissolved and a new constellation appeared in the sky. It was the Huntress.

"The meeting will start shortly. We have to get back to Olympus" Artemis declared in a solemn voice. She summoned her chariot and motioned the demigods to get in. After closing the door, she looked at Percy. "I'll see you upstairs" he said with a slight nod and disappeared in whirlpool of darkness.

 **Hi guys! I just finished writing this part. It will take some time for the next update where Percy's power of illusion will be explained. It was tough to imagine the battle-scenario between Atlas and Percy. Do tell me if you liked it. Keep reading and reviewing. Deathsatlker11 out. Take care.**


	12. Chapter 12

**CHAPTER 12**

Olympus was in a state of uproar. The gods were all grim-faced. Artemis was silently sobbing on Apollo's shoulder. Even Ares was silent, his sword absent.

However, Percy was nowhere in sight.

Zeus was in deep thought. The demigods, especially Annabeth gave their individual account of the past few days. The signs were indeed troubling.

The only good thing was that the Ophiotaurus was successfully secured. It was now in an enlarged aquarium in Olympus, under Poseidon's protection.

Suddenly, a swirl of darkness appeared in the middle of the throne room and Percy stepped out.

"Ah so you have started. Sorry I got held up with a minor errand in the Middle East" Percy said with a grin. Zeus's eyebrows twitched dangerously. "You mean to say that you wilfully neglected the council meeting, wherein your presence was demanded, so that you could gallivant with your mortal affairs?" Zeus asked with a growl. "Ah don't be so condescending Zeus. Mortal affairs are important too" Percy said with a frown.

"Father, I believe we should start going through the events without any further ado. Arguing with Percy will not serve anyone and will simply be a waste of our time" Athena said with a deep sigh. Percy gave a smirk. Athena was always the cool headed one.

Zeus grumbled. "Fine. What do you have to say about the events leading up to the recently ended quest to rescue Artemis wherein the lieutenant and a huntress was killed?"

Percy narrowed his eyes. "Are you implying that I am responsible for the deaths of two huntress?" "You are not exactly denying the allegations" replied Athena. Percy rolled his eyes. _Bunch of morons_ he thought.

"In case you are forgetting, it was _prophesied_ that Zoe would die. How on earth am I responsible for her death? I can't meddle with prophesies" Percy replied with a frown. It was true. No matter how much he wished, he knew he couldn't change the outcome of prophesies nor is it any good trying to meddle in one.

"What about the other huntress?" asked Athena. She was curious because for the first time, she was seeing the limits of his powers. While she wasn't deluded enough to believe anyone can wield limitless powers, Percy's limits were always a mystery.

"I didn't even know her before the quest. Why should I be held responsible? I was not the one who chose the team" Percy replied with a huff. That wasn't exactly true. He did know who Bianca was, but he didn't know her personally.

Apparently, that was a wrong thing to say.

"Are you saying Zoe was responsible for Bianca's death?" Artemis snarled.

"Yes and no. While it was prophesied that someone would die in a desert, it need not have been Bianca per se. It could have been anyone. However, since Zoe chose Bianca, her death is not anyone else's fault" Percy said with a grim face. A lot of his plans had to be changed because of that death.

"You bastard" Artemis yelled in anger. Her hunting knife suddenly appeared in her hands and she was about to stab him, before being restrained by Apollo. It wouldn't do anyone good to have her sister stab Percy. "Let go of me Apollo. Let me kill this son of a bitch. How dare he blame Zoe" Artemis was frantically struggling against Apollo. "Calm down sis. He didn't mean to blame Zoe" Apollo desperately tried to reason with her.

After repeated assurances and desperate pleas from Apollo, Artemis finally calmed down enough to put away her knife.

Hera realised that the entire situation would delve into chaos if nothing was done quickly. "Why don't you tell us about your intel Percy? How did you come about the location of the Ophiotaurus?" she asked. She had a lingering suspicion that Percy had something to do with Artemis's capture, thus resulting in the entire quest and the subsequent fiasco.

Percy gave a tired sigh. _The things I do for humanity,_ he thought with a smirk.

"A few months ago, I received an intel that the Ophiotaurus was sighted. Though it did match with enemy plans for the prophesy child, the source was way too unreliable. A few days later, in Tel Aviv, I received another intel report of a US Navy AUV attached to a minesweeper receiving extensive damage during a training exercise near the San Francisco harbour. While the reports do not seem to be related, several monsters and enemy demigods were sighted that day near the harbour. So, I went to 'Frisco to verify the intel. There was indeed an accident involving a minesweeper that day. However, things were not adding up. Enemy demigods had nothing to do with AUVs. I asked one of my ONI (Office of Naval Intelligence) contacts for a detailed report. Imagine my surprise, when the sonar readout of the AUV indicated that the craft collided with an unknown sea creature. I asked the naiads about the creature. Though none could give me the exact details, they all said one thing. The creature was a cross between sea-horse and cow. I realised that it was the Ophiotaurus". Percy paused at that. He wasn't sure how much of Apollo's involvement he should reveal. By the furtive glances Apollo threw him every now and then, he realised that he can't reveal too much of his involvement. Artemis was too angry to be thinking clearly and she might take Apollo's involvement as a betrayal of her trust. That was unacceptable.

The rest of the council was fascinated. It was the first time they got an insight to Percy's job. While they knew he was a spy for a very long time, they never knew how he managed to gather the most obscuring, elusive and classified information.

"I then contacted Apollo. I wanted to know if any prophesy was given. When we were discussing this information, we were compromised". Percy gave out a sigh. While he knew he was being compromised and he purposefully fed the information to enemy hands, the Olympians didn't need to know that.

"How exactly were you compromised?" Zeus asked incredulously. He knew how good Percy was and what he was capable of. It simply unimaginable to think he slipped up.

"We were meeting in a bar, The Hunter's Inn. Near the Russian-Ukrainian border. The waitress overheard us. Apparently, there were listening devices in the shot glass. I was careless. To be honest, I never expected the Titan's to have spies in Russia as well. By the time I realised that the intel was compromised, it was already too late".

That was a blatant lie. Percy knew about the bugs. He knew exactly who was overseeing the intelligence network. It was an unassuming demigod son of Nemesis, Ethan Nakamura. The guy wore an eyepatch. However, he fed him a slew of false information via his mother, Nemesis herself. While she didn't approve of Zeus, her minor goddess status didn't allow her to rebel openly. Percy, however, _convinced_ her to oppose Zeus. It was then a game of deception and subterfuge. Covert warfare at its finest.

"You mean to say that when you gave Artemis the information about the monster's location, you knew that it was compromised?" Zeus asked testily.

"Yes. The intel was already compromised. It could very well have been a trap. I realized it as well. But I had to do it nonetheless. Do you know why Zeus? It was because of you. The signs were visible for many years and yet you choose to ignore them. The minor gods have jumped the ship. Many other immortals have taken up arms against us. Why do you think they did that? Almost half of the camp has emptied. Luke is a scapegoat. He's too stupid to understand the bigger picture. But you are not. The Titans are strong enough to raise Mount Othrys. They are strong enough to trap Olympian gods and they will grow stronger. Tell me, O god of thunder and lightning, what will you do knowing these facts? Will you still pretend that everything is all fine and dandy? Or will you prepare for war and mobilise your armies?" Percy took a deep breathe.

Everyone was silent. When their short-comings and faults were laid bare in front of them, it seemed as they have messed up a big time. Zeus was in deep thought. While it was true that the enemy was getting stronger day by day, he never anticipated them to be this strong this quickly. Artemis's capture was the major eye-opener for the Olympians. It seemed that the situation was rapidly getting out of hands.

"Did Apollo know that the intel was compromised?" asked Artemis with a grim face.

"I don't expect the god of poetry and sunshine to know what a compromised intel looks like even if it slaps him in the face" snapped Percy. He was getting impatient. He was pointedly looking at Zeus.

"Very well. Poseidon and Hades are to mobilise their armies at the earliest. Artemis, you will be recruiting and training the hunters for intense combat. Not just against the monsters but against enemy demigods and immortals. Dionysus, you will up the training of the demigods. Make sure they are at least ready for intensive, sustained combat within 6 months" Zeus replied.

It was finally official. Olympus is preparing for war.

"What will you do Percy, in the meantime?" asked Athena. She looked anxious. Percy gave a smirk. "What I always do Minny, my thing" he replied with a chuckle and disappeared in a swirl of darkness. Athena was left sputtering and blushing.

Everyone was staring at the spot Percy was standing just moments before.

"Athena, I want you to tail him and gather information about him" said Zeus with a grim face. "Do you think he has turned father?" asked Athena. Personally, she hated to think that Percy has turned.

"No. I know him too well. He won't ever turn his back on us to side with the titans. Not after he has seen their true colours. But I don't trust him. I think he has held information regarding this mess from us" replied Zeus. He knew how good Percy was at gathering information. He has seen his skills first hand in the first titan war.

"Very well father. I shall follow him" said Athena and disappeared in a golden flash.

 **Hey guys, this Deathstalker11 here. Its been a long time and I was extremely busy with exams. This is the next chapter of the story and hope you like it. Keep reading and reviewing. The next chapter will explain some of Percy's history a bit. And his powers as well. Deathstalker11 out. Take care.**


	13. Chapter 13

**CHAPTER 13**

"Is this what you meant by 'violent stimulus' when you wanted them to open their eyes?"

"More or less"

"I bet Artemis is less than pleased"

"Me too. But it had to be done"

"Even though I'm impressed that you have managed to pull of such a daring and complicated plan flawlessly, I can't say I approve"

"That makes, like, 13 of you or something"

Nyx and Percy were exchanging barbs continuously throughout the day. She honestly didn't approve what Percy pulled off. But there's little she could do. Even though she was far more powerful than Percy, he was an integral part of the Primordial council. He had way too many contacts to be of enough influence. It was common knowledge that Tartarus was swarming with his spies. Nyx was an idealist. She couldn't approve deception and subterfuge amongst allies. But Percy was of different genre. He loved keeping his cards secret while exposing opponent's cards.

"You know, you could have assisted them with the planning" said Nyx. She was seated on her throne while Percy was rapidly disassembling and reassembling a cross-bow.

"They have a goddess for that. They don't need me. Well that is if the said goddess does her job instead of stalking me" replied Percy without looking up. It seemed as though he was modifying his cross-bow.

"Quite the ladies' man you are" said Nyx with a smirk. Percy gave a shrug.

"Had to become one. The best kind of info is always found in bars and brothels" replied Percy with a non-committal grunt.

Nyx gave a sigh. "Artemis was your close friend at one time. With what you pulled off, she was hurt pretty bad and I don't you will be able to reconcile with her anytime soon". Percy looked up and met her eye. He could see that Nyx cared about him, like a mother or an older sister. She wanted to disapprove his actions but couldn't because that was exactly what the Olympians needed.

Well it was time to go anyway. He was not the one to dishonour appointments. He gave one last critical look to his cross-bow before reassembling it. He loaded it and fired at the wall. it worked perfectly.

"I know but unfortunately, I don't care" he replied before disappearing in a swirl of shadows.

 _Line break…_

For a blind man, Benjamin Asher was extremely conscious of his surroundings. It wouldn't do anyone, especially his country, any good if someone gets the drop on him. 15 years in IDF with another 3 years in Sayaret Matkal fined tuned his razor-sharp senses of hearing and smell. His sense of touch was second to none.

He also had an unnatural sense of time. That's why when his acquaintance was almost half an hour late, he was positively frowning.

"You aren't getting any younger old man and those frowns definitely won't help" said a voice. He recognised him immediately.

"Well you are late, young man. I may not be a spring chicken anymore but I sure am not late" he replied. There was a snort.

"30 years in MOSSAD your sense of humour is just as bad as ever"

"Well hush now. We don't want the entire world to know that I'm from MOSSAD now do we? It still beats me how you managed to get that information to this day. I thought that the entire archive was lost".

"It was. After I managed to get that information"

"I'd have said lucky you but I'll pass. I'm taking the white this time"

"White or black it doesn't matter. I'll still beat you"

"Must be nice to keep dreaming something for the past 10 years"

 _Line break…._

Athena was exasperated beyond measure. Her eyebrows were twitching violently. She had been on the lookout for Percy for the past week. But not a sign of him anywhere. Its like he completely disappeared from the world. She even made a visit to the underworld, where Cerberus got a drop on her and drenched her with slob from head to toe. She never could figure out how that _monstrosity_ managed to get the drop on her, Olympian goddess of wisdom and battle strategy be damned.

However, Percy was not present in the underworld as well.

After deciding to take a break and have an ice-cream, she decided to take a walk in Hudson Park. It was a pleasant sunny day with mild breeze. There were couples hanging out enjoying the day and several old men enjoying a game of chess. Suddenly she spotted someone that made her freeze in her tracks.

There, playing chess with an aged man wearing sunglasses, was Percy.

She didn't know whether to jump in joy or to summon her weapons and gut him like a pig.

Just as she was about to hide, Percy looked at her gave an indulgent smile.

 _Why that little son of a…_

"Minny, fancy seeing you here. Care to join us for a game of chess? Ben here wouldn't mind" yelled Percy. Athena was left blushing. She made her way towards them.

"How nice to see you again Minny, I definitely missed you. Did you miss me?" asked Percy with a mischievous smile. Athena definitely wanted to gut him.

"Ah Percy, is that your girlfriend? You never told me about any girlfriend" Ben said with a frown. Athena was about to deny when Percy interjected.

"Well you never told me about your granddaughter Ben. Doesn't mean you don't have one" replied Percy with a smirk. "I'd have asked how you knew about her but then I don't wanna know. Are you going to introduce us?"

"Easy now old man. Remember you are not a spring chicken anymore" Percy replied with a mischievous smile. Ben gave a snort. "Can still teach you a thing or two about ladies, kid".

Athena cleared her throat loudly.

"Ah yes. Minny meet Benjamin Asher, my chess buddy. Ben, meet Athena, my girlfriend" Percy introduced them all the time while casting mischievous glances towards Athena. He enjoyed riling her up way too much.

"Athena? As in the Greek goddess of wisdom and battle strategy?" asked Ben.

"Yup. Very much like the Greek goddess" replied Percy while ignoring the glares from the said goddess. "Funny her nickname is Minny. If I didn't know any better, I'd say you shortened the roman name to rile her up" Ben replied while chuckling. "You don't know any better old man" said Percy chuckling, while avoiding Athena's death glares.

Ben took her hand. "It was lovely meeting you. I'm afraid I have some important business to take care of. Pity I couldn't enjoy a game of chess with a lovely woman such as yourself. Have fun both of you while I take my leave. Take care kid"

"Yea you take care too old man. I don't wanna see you in any hospital just because you forgot your cane" replied Percy. Ben simply snorted while shaking his head.

Athena observed him while he unfolded his cane. It was white.

"That man was blind?" asked Athena. She was astonished. She could see that Percy lost the game and he was exceedingly good at chess. Her feet brushed with something. She looked down and saw a briefcase. Percy gave a smile.

"Unfortunately, he is blind. A botched operation by the Israeli Special forces and he lost his sight. Had to be retired. Got absorbed in MOSSAD due to his uncanny ability to gather information. Retired after serving 30 years as an analyst and liaison to the Prime Minister's Office. Or that's his official story" he replied.

"Official story? That isn't the actual story?" Athena asked incredulously. It was a pretty mundane cover story as far as cover stories go.

"Of course not. He's the head of the counter-intelligence division and he's definitely not blind"

Athena was stunned. If Olympus did half of what these mortal intelligence agencies did, they wouldn't have had to face this war.

"The head of MOSSAD counter-intelligence _here_? Is that his briefcase?" Athena asked rapidly. Her mind was racing. Percy simply gave her a smile.

"As much as I would love to chat about Ben, I'm not sure I feel good talking about some old man in our date" he replied. Athena gave him a frigid glare.

"Don't flatter yourself. We are definitely not on a date. In fact, you'd be the last person in my mind to date" she replied waspishly.

"Oh my. Here I thought you were desperate for my attention judging by the way you were stalking me for the last few days. We can make a tsundere out of you yet" replied Percy with a mischievous smile. Athena gave him a murderous glare yet her cheeks were tinted red.

"Anyways, I doubt Zeus wants to know about the activities of MOSSAD. I know this perfect place just around the corner. They make the most delicious milkshakes. Let's go" Percy replied while taking the briefcase, something which did not go unnoticed by her.

 _Again a line break_ 😊…

Jason never realised how much interest he and Annabeth had attracted with their recent quest. That's why, he was terrified when Hestia appeared before them in a swirl of flames. "L…Lady Hestia, it's an honour to meet you here". While Jason may have been terrified, he didn't forget his manners. Annabeth was too shocked to speak coherently. Hestia simply gave a smile.

With an appearance of a 25-year old woman and a flaming red hair, Hestia was simply stunning. Her smooth, silky hair reached just a little below her shoulders and her body filled out her curves perfectly and at right places.

"Its been a long time since I have taken this form. Come little demigods. We have much to talk and discuss" she said while leading them to the forest.

"Firstly, I would like to congratulate you on a job well done. Even though the loss of two hunters was regrettable to say the least" Hestia said with a smile. Both Jason and Annabeth gave tight nods.

"Now that's out of the way, why don't you describe me what you saw on Mount Othrys. Especially regarding Percy. I'll try to shed some light".

Jason and Annabeth took turns to explain the fight between Atlas and Percy and his power of illusion. They described everything in detail, leaving nothing out. Hestia listened to them patiently. She was afraid Percy would use that power of his. It was downright frightening.

"Before I explain about his powers, you must know that none of us know about his limits. His powers have limits, but none of know what they are. Now you must understand that what you witnessed was his powers over reality and mind. He can rewrite reality using illusions. Of course, he can't do anything drastic but he can make subtle changes. In the fight that you witnessed, he simply made subtle changes to the functioning of Atlas's brain. Like significantly reducing his pain tolerance, making his brain believe that his lungs have been pierced and so on all the while you thought you were watching him fight. However, don't be fooled by this. Before all this, he was a fearsome soldier and a brilliant strategist and tactician. His strategies and tactics won us the first two wars. Due to unfortunate circumstances, which were further complicated by Zeus, he turned into a spy and an assassin. He went dark for many years before finally emerging around the time Athena was born. Ever since then, he remained elusive" Hestia took a deep breathe. She loved Percy dearly like a little brother. She was incredibly sad at the way his life turned out.

"Lady Hestia, just how old is Percy?" asked Annabeth, a light blush tinting her cheeks. His little speech at Mount Othrys had garnered her interest. Hestia gave her a measured look.

 _So much like Athena,_ she thought.

"He was born before the titan war began. After Zeus rescued us, there was a lull. No one knew what to do next. At that time, Poseidon had a fling with a mortal woman. Percy was born out of that fling. Since Poseidon couldn't stay with her, he left them after Percy was born. When he was 3 years old, his mother died when their village was raided by bandits. He was an orphan ever since. I can't say anymore because its not my story to tell but in case you were wondering about his water powers, don't worry. He doesn't have any from Poseidon" replied Hestia. Annabeth understood why but Jason had a dumb look on his face. Seeing this Hestia gave a sigh.

"We got our powers when we received our domains which was after the war. From then, any son of Poseidon received his powers over water. Don't ask me how Percy got his powers, no one knows and no one ever will" Hestia said with a smile. Seeing both the demigods in deep thought, she simply gave short chuckle before disappearing in a swirl of flames.

 **Hey guys! Deathstalker11 here. A little bit of Percy's past and his powers has been explained here. Hope you liked it. If you guys have any new and interesting ideas about his powers, please do notify me. I don't live in New York. The park name is completely random. Keep reading and reviewing. Deathstalker11 out. Take care.**


	14. Chapter 14

**CHAPTER 14**

"So, you wanna tell me sometime why you were stalking me for the past one week?"

"Because I was asked to"

"Let me rephrase the question then. Why were you asked to stalk me by Zeus? Why did he choose you?"

Athena was looking at Percy nervously. She had no idea how he would take it if she told him that Zeus doesn't trust him. As for his second question, she herself had no idea. She always thought that being the goddess of wisdom and battle strategy, she would know how to spy on people. However, recent experiences showed her how utterly wrong her beliefs were. She hoped Percy would see her pleading expression and drop his questions.

Too bad Percy was focussed on his chocolate milkshake, trying to eat the almonds separately.

Her eyebrows twitched when she realized that he wasn't even paying attention. She let out a deep sigh. _I wonder what made me have a crush on him when I was young_ , she mused.

When she was raised by Triton, she was regaled by the stories of Percy's heroics. She always used to imagine herself as the damsel in distress and Percy as her knight in shining armour. Of course, when she grew up, she realized that there were no knights in shining armour and she definitely didn't want to be the damsel in distress. After witnessing many fights and getting into some of them, she realized that people like Percy were no heroes. They simply did whatever was needed to win the fight. For them, there was only one rule; _victory at all cost_. Heroes definitely didn't stab people at the back and massacred the others to win.

But she still couldn't help have a crush on him. She studied his role in the first Titan war. Saying that she was impressed would be a huge understatement. She was absolutely fascinated. She always had a soft spot for men who used their brains more than brawn. Percy was a master at it. He won battles with the least possible friendly casualties in the least possible time. His strategies and tactics were brilliant. He fought with a cold and brutal efficiency.

Later when she realised that Percy never really harboured any feelings of love or romance towards anyone, she was heartbroken. She took a vow of maidenhood. From then she had many brain-children, but she always remembered Percy as the one who captured her heart.

"I'm still waiting Minny" drawled Percy, breaking her from her thoughts.

"Fine. Zeus doesn't trust you. He thinks you are holding information from him that could be crucial to the war effort. So, he asked me to tail you and report back to him about your activities. I was supposed to report to him at the end of the week" she replied with a huff.

Percy chuckled in amusement. "Apparently, all that his favourite daughter would have in report is her date with the man she was supposed to spy on. I wish I could see Zeus's face when he hears this". Athena gave a frown. Zeus would be enraged with this.

"So, what were you doing this past week? And I'm sure I don't wanna know how you knew that I was following you when I couldn't even find you" Athena said in a huff. _This is embarrassing,_ she thought.

"A little bit of this, a bit of that. Many places to see, many people to meet. It was quite boring really" replied Percy, shaking his glass "why don't you tell me about the son of Zeus, Minny?" he asked while beckoning the waitress.

"Can you refill my glass dear?" he asked the giggling waitress.

"Sure" she replied, blushing. Just as she was about to go he called out "Oh, and hers too, if you'd be so kind" he said pointing towards Athena. The waitress frowned at her and nodded tightly. Athena was throwing her dirty looks all the time, discreetly.

"He is like any son of Zeus. Power hungry, vain, attention-seeker, headstrong, dumb with no flair for strategy or tactics. Oh, and a sense of honour. One could almost say that he was a Roman" she said in a distaste. It was no secret that she hated Rome.

"Hmm, and here I had hopes for him. Well, we can still make a soldier out of him yet. Nico is too young and we don't have that much time" Percy mused.

"Things would have been easier if Bianca was still alive" Athena replied with a sigh. It was no secret that she didn't like the son of Zeus and desperately wanted Bianca to be the child of prophecy.

"I know. Well its too bad. We have to work with what we have" Percy said with a frown. "As much as it has been fun catching up with you Minny, I have lots of work to do. See you later. And don't worry about the bill, it's taken care of. Can't let the girl pay on a date" Percy smirked before walking out the door. Athena chased after him but he was nowhere to be seen.

 _LINE BREAK AGAIN…._

The corridor was dark, narrow and long. The walls were damp and had a greenish hue. It appeared more like a cave than an artificial tunnel. The footsteps were ringing out ominously. A tall man with short grey hair and clipped beard was walking down the hallway. He looked remarkably fit for a man in his fifties. He was wearing a dusty brown travelling cloak and had a longsword strapped to his side. As soon as he came near the door he stopped. He closed his eyes and put his ears on the door, listening intently. After a few minutes, he reached inside his cloak brought out a loaded cross bow.

Silently opening the door, he stepped inside with crossbow aimed down his sights. He reached with his hands, grabbed the switch and swung it up.

As the various lights, monitors and gizmos blared to life, he saw that someone was already sitting on his sofa, his face covered in darkness.

"If you are who I think you are, then you have ten seconds to show me your face before I fire. Trust me, there won't be much left of you if I do" said the man while aiming his crossbow.

"And if I'm not who you think I am?" a voice emerged from the sofa.

"Then you have five seconds to show me your face. After that, I don't care if you are my mother. I will fire"

There was a tense silence. After a few seconds, a face emerged from the darkness. It was a face of a handsome young man in his twenties, with a raven-black messy hair and a pair of emerald green eyes. He was wearing a black trench coat and dirty brown combat boots.

"Well hello Percy. I'd say it's a pleasure to meet you but then I'd be lying" said the man with a sneer, lowering his crossbow. "Oh c'mon, don't be mean. I didn't come here for trouble. I haven't seen you in a long time" Percy replied with a mock pout.

"Apparently not long enough" the man replied with a disdain. "What do you want from me now? Don't tell me you lost the ball of string and you want me to make another one"

Percy gave a snort. "What makes you think I want another ball of string? I still have mine. I'm here for a different reason"

"Well I haven't got all day. So spill it"

"It has recently come to my attention that you have been dealing with some rather unsavoury characters. In fact, you have now returned from a meeting with those characters" Percy replied with a smile which didn't quite reach his eyes.

The man froze. He wanted to keep these meetings secret. There was no saying what would happen if the gods came to know about these meetings. He hoped that Percy wouldn't come to know about his dealings. He should have known better.

"What do you want in exchange for keeping my dealings secret?" he asked wearily, keeping a tight grip on his crossbow.

"What do they want with you and your ingenious system of tunnels?"

"They want a way to navigate. They want a ball of string"

"So, you give them the ball in return for what?"

"You very well know in return for what Percy. I made the same deal with you before, remember?"

"Yes, I do. Very curious indeed"

"What's so curious about it?"

"The person from whom you trying to run from has made the same deal with them. So you, my friend, will be stabbed in the back the moment you complete your usefulness to them"

"And you won't?"

"Well, good point. But you will remain useful to me for a longer time than to them"

"Fair enough. So what do you want me to do? Do you want me to back out of the deal?"

"Absolutely not. Do give them the string by all means. We will get many birds with a single stone in that way"

Percy began walking towards the door, a disturbing smile on his face. As he opened the door, he paused.

"All I ask you is this. When the time comes, remember where your loyalties lie, Quintus or should I call you…. Daedalus?"

As he shut the door, the room went dark once more.

 _The End…_

 **Hey guys! Deathstalker11 here. This story is finally complete. Please do read and review. I will start working on the sequel shortly. Deathstalker11 out. Take care.**


End file.
